Improvement in mechanisms for operating doffer-combs



UNITED STATES PATENT E EDWARD WRIGHT, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN MECHANISMS FORYOPERATING DOFFER-CDMBS.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 172,541, dated January 18, 1876; application filed v July 20, 1875.

To all 'whom it may concerm' Be it known that I, EDWARD WEIGHT, of Worcester, in the county of Worcester and State ot' Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Comb-Vibrators for Garding-Machines; and I do hereby declare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it` pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawing and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 represents a side elevation of my improved apparatus as applied to the comb rock-shaft, and Fig. 2 a rear elevation of the same. Fig. 3 represents a vertical transverse section oi a portion of the apparatus, as taken through the center of the rockshat't. Fig. 4: represents a similar View of a modified form of the apparatus. Figs. 5 and 6 represent detail views.

My inventionl relates to a new and improved mode of mounting and driving the vibrating deft'er-comb of a carding-machine; and it consists in mounting the immediate driving-pul- .ley of the comb rock-shaft and its crank-pin loosely upon conical bearings, and then -holding said pulley and crank-pin snugly on said bearings, through the action ot' a spring directly or indirectly connected with said rockshaft and its actuating crank-arm, whereby, as the bearings wear, they become self-adjusting, and constantly insure a smooth, even, and noiseless motion to the vibrating comb.`

My improvement also consists in a newand improved method of oiling the bearings ot' the pulley, crank-pin, and actuatingarm of the rock-shaft, whereby the whole is effected simultaneously through a single oil-opening formed in the bearing of the pulley.

To enable others skilled in the art to make, construct, and use my invention, l will now proceed to describe its parts in detail, omitting a description of such parts oi' a cardingmachine as are unnecessary to a full understanding of` my improvement.

My -improvements are equally applicable to wool and cotton carding machines, the comb being used for stripping the doii'er in either case. Moreover, the comb itself may be applied to its rock-shaft in any ot' the known Ways, such forming no part ot' my present im provement.

Here, also, it may be stated that my improvements are equally as applicable to old as to new carding-machines specially constructed for their use. When applied to old, I use the style represented in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, as no alteration is necessary to be made in the bearings ol' Athe comb rock-shaft; 'but in new machines I prefer to provide externally conical or tapering bearings.

A represents a portion ot' the frame of an ordinary carding-machine, and B the rockshaft, which carries the stripping-comb ofthe doi'er, and which maybe mounted in bearings in the 'ordinary way. In this condition, when it is desired to apply my improvement, as in the case of an old machine, I secure a headpiece, C, to its outer end, said head-piece consisting otl a short hollow cylinder, a, cast in one piece with a cross head-piece composed of three arms, two, c c, ot' which are arranged diametrically opposite to each other, and carry pivotal pins e, on which the crank arm or lever D, through which a rocking motion is imparted to shaft B, rocks as on a pivot. The third arm, fi, of crosshead C carries a stud-pin, a, the upper side of' which is notched, so as to form an upward projection, as shown in Fig. 3, against which the lower forked end ot' a spring, b, finds a bearing.` The forked ends of said spring embrace the sides of pin n, in order to hold that end securely in place. i

The projecting ends of bearing-pins e @may either both be conical, or one of them conical and the other of elongated t'orm,being lengthened in the line ofthe diameter of the cross-head, in which latter case its outer end will be smoothly rounded over in the arc ot' a circle. Suitable and corresponding depressions are formed in the inner face ot' the arm or lever D, for their reception. These pivotal pins are made somewhat longer than the bearing -point ot' the spring b on its pin u, so that when the arm D is titted on said pivotal pins, and the spring b fitted on its notched bearing-pin a, and then firmly secured at its upper end, by the screw mounting the actuating devices is provided at its upper end with an opening,

for the passageof spring b, and is otherwise` formed and constructed substantially as shown in Figs. l and 2, it being also provided with an actuating guide-rib, m, on its inner face, which extends down its center in a radial line from the center of shaft B, from near the lower end of spring b to its lower end. Rib m o f lever D lits and slides in a guide-groove formed in a loose crank-pin, o, which hasits bearing i-n the actuating-pulley E.

The construction of said crank-pin is well illustrated'in Figs. 3, 4,' and 5, in the latter of which a cross section is shown of the lower end of lever D in position. The v.groove of crank-pin o I .prefer to line with leather t, or other soft anti-friction material. v

. By reference to Figs. 3 and 4 it will be seen that crankpin ois provided with a conical stem, and nds a correspondingly shaped bearing eccentrically arranged in pulley E.' Pulley E, in turn, is also provided with a conical or taperingV socket, and turns on a correspondingly-shaped stud-pin or stationary axis, G. This construction of the bearings of the crank-pin 0 and pulley G enables the spring cranklever D to keep them constantly adjusted as they wear. By the use of a spring-pivoted lever, D, it will be seen that it enables my improvement to be applied to the comb rock-shaft of any ordinary carding-machine without change of bearings.

By constructing crank-pin o with an actuating-groove, and mounting it in a bearing, the rock-shaft can be worked more smoothly and evenly than 4if it were rigidly secured to the face of the pulley and actuated .the-cranklever D by means of a slot on the latter. Moreover, it renders the application Iof a so-ft anti-friction material practicable, which the other does not, and enables the machine to be run smoothly and noiselessly. f

In driving the comb-shaft, power lis applied to pulley E from any properly-speeded pulley or shaft of the 'carding-machine or drivingengine. p f

. These devices may also be applied lto new machines, in which case I prefer to mount the cone-shaft in a conical bearing, as in Figs. 2 and 3, so that, as the bearings of the crankpino and pulley E wear, the shaft lB may be readily readjusted; but, as a rule, inapplying myv improved method of constructing and of the combshaft to new machines, I prefer themode of doing .so illustrated in Fig. 4. In this method the comb-shaft B at one end is mounted'in a bearing, r, of conical shape externally, and in a plain bearing at the other.. Upon shaft B is arranged a spiral spring, b, the one end of which bears against the inner end of bearing 1', and the other against the collar s, to which latter is secured the end of one of the arms that carry the colnb. `Collar .s being firmly secured to the rock-shaft D, and the latter having free end play through bearing r, the tendency of spring b will be to draw shaft B through the bearing; but, as shaft B is provided with a crank-arm, D, which is Vrigidly secured to-shaft B and bears on crank-pin o, its rib m, working in the groove of the latter, in the same manner as in the former case, spring b simply forces vshaft B back far enough to drawcrank-lever D up firmly against crank-pin o, thus keeping the latter, and through it pulley E, snugly up on their bearings, thereby rendering them self-adjusting as their surfaces wear. To this end it will be apparent that the pulley E should be made as light as possible consistent with the work to vbe done, that unnecessary strain may not bel thrown o'nj the spring.

' Now, by reference to Fig. 3, it will be seen that stud yor bearing pin G of pulley E is provided with a central opening or channel, u, and with two radial openings, .c c', the one, c, above and near its inner end, and the other, c', belowand near its outer end, the latter communicating with a longitudinal groove or depression, w, through which thebearing of pulley E is lubricated, the oil being poured in at opening o. A small channel, z, is also made to communicate between the bearingopening of pulley E and the bearing-openin g of crankp'in'o,'its upper end 4being sufficiently far in to Vcommunicate with the groove or depression w of bearing-pin G. This serves to lubricate the bearing of crank-pin o. ,Crankf pin o is also provided with a central channel, w,

into which the'surplus oil Vfrom its Abearing passesl at its inner end, and from thence to the groove in which the rib m of armD slides back and forth, thereby lubricating the sliding surfaces of the two. Thus the whole of these bearings may be lubricated simultaneously through the single opening o. y

Here it may be remarked that the outer end of channel u should be plugged up, to prevent the escape of oil atthat point, for which purpose a short plug or screw-pin may be used. This done, the combined channels form a small reservoir, which will require less attention than if the lubrication were separately effected.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire lto secure by Letters Patent, isl l. The loose pulley E and crank-pin o, having conical or tapering bearings, in combina- `tion with the comb rock-shaft B of a carding-I'nachine, its crank'lever or arm D, and spring b, the whole adapted to operate in the manner substantially as set forth.

2. The stud-beaming Gr, provided with the my own, I affix mj signature in presence of oilehannels u, o, of, and w, in combination tWo Witnesses. with the pulley E, provided with the channel z, and the crunk-pin o, having the channel w, EDWARD WRIGHT' all substantially as and for the purposes set Witnesses: forth. ABIEL E. WILSON,

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as DANIEL DAVIS, Jr. 

